No. 19 Florida needed a freshman to close out its conference rival.
With Georgia leading the Gators by one point in overtime on Saturday, redshirt freshman Keith Stone caught a pass and heard coach Mike White from the sidelines.
“I was wide open so coach said, ‘Knock it down,’” Stone said.
Stone stepped into, shot and sunk the biggest three-pointer of his young career -— one that gave Florida the lead for the last time and gave Stone a career-high 17 points.
Florida’s 6-foot-8 freshman forward exceeded expectations in UF’s 80-76 win against the Bulldogs over the weekend. But he would have never gotten the chance at the beginning of the season.
White said Stone’s struggles on defense kept him from playing to start the year.
“I hate to say that about my guy, but yeah,” White said. “He was a freshman that had a lot to learn.”
Stone played fewer than eight minutes per game until the coaching staff saw him become more disciplined on defense, moving his feet and not taking plays off.
Senior point guard Kasey Hill said the rookie’s finally getting a chance to showcase his potential, and there's more to come.
“He just really hasn’t gotten a chance to really play that much," Hill said. "Now that he’s playing defense, he’s playing more."
Contact Matt Brannon at mbrannon@alligator.org and follow him on Twitter @MattB_727.
UF forward Keith Stone prepares to shoot a free throw in Florida's 80-76 win against Georgia on Jan. 14, 2017, at the O'Connell Center.
